Fabulous! I've made this cake several times and with spectacular results. It's the only dessert that is repeatedly requested every Christmas at my dessert buffet. I add a couple tablespoons of Gran Marnier to the orange frosting. Also, it helps to brush the cakes with Gran Marnier before assembling. Also, I let the pears rest in the cranberry sauce over night to give them a deeper color. I find that the cake should be made and assembled at least 1 day in advance. It always seems to be better after day 2!

i spent an afternoon preparing this dessert, and while the labor was fun, the end result was so-so. the frosting was delicious, but the torte itself did not have the right balance of spicy and sweet, in my opinion. too much work for a
less than tremendous outcome

This was a pretty good recipe, wonderful to look at. However, I found I didn't have enough frosting so made another 1/2 recipe when I realized. I found that the torte itself was rather dry. I added a layer of puree to the middle, and drizzled more puree around. Looked lovely, and was good but not great, in my opinion.

I don't enjoy making desserts. This looked and sounded so good I just had to try it for Christmas. It was not hard, but has a number of steps. The recipe is written perfectly and my torte turned out just like the photograph. I was worried that its taste could not live up to its presentation, but it certainly did.

Great recipe and presentation especially for Christmas - hence the name! For a non-dessert cook it was well worth the effort. It was not hard just a few steps. Nice that it can be made a couple of days ahead.